This sudden drop in temperature from 70's to 20's has me reminiscing the Soondubu Jigae (soft tofu stew) by Kum's Cafe. It is spicy, savory but not overly salty, sweet or thin. It is full of soft tofu and fragrant w sesame oil. I do wish they would add more seafood in it, though. You will have to ask for the egg to be added if you want it, too. But, there's just no better version of it in the city currently. I have tried them all! Service is warm and friendly from the same halmeoni/grandma over the years. The last time I was there, fried chicken or fish were not available. But I'll be back just for the soondubu jigae alone!! I also love their seafood pancake and the various sides. read more

Kum's Cafe - Panjun: seafood pancake and the panchan. - Korean Near Me - Louisville, Kentucky

Oh my gosh, I had this place for the first time last night and I can't stop thinking about it. The food was delicious, so fresh. I can't wait to go back and try more things. The dumplings were the best I've had in my life, and that's saying something because I've had alotttt of dumplings in my life lol. The couple who ran the restaurant was so sweet. read more

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This place is a challenge to find, it sits in a Very small building next to Derby Gaming. Come as you are, this a small mom and pop operation. There ins't any piped in music, just basic Korean menu with items on the front and back. The menu on the wall list daily Korean specials on the left side and the right one is all about the chicken items. We ordered the thin slice bbq ribeye, egg roll and rice to go. They give large portions of the main dish plus a plate filled with rice. Food was good and cooked to perfection. The kimchi is spicy spicy so watch out. This food is loaded with flavor. There wasn't a cash register in site, the elderly lady just added each item on paper. They do accept credit cards. Next time I will try the chicken menu since the reviews on yelp are positive about them. read more

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Guys, this is the best Korean spot in Louisville. I love the woman running the restaurant. She's so sweet. And she remembers us now because we come so often. Seriously, when I crave Korean food this spot satiates my cravings. Every time we're there I'm saddened by the fact that one day this lovely couple will retire (which I'll be so happy for them), but I'll lose and miss this place so much!!! This is truly a gem. Louisvillians have no idea what they have. In my most recent visit, we had the pa jun, danjang jigea, and grilled mackerel. The pa jun was delicious as always. The danjang jigea did not have the jalepeno as advertised on the menu, but it was still good and it had zucchini -- I'm assuming they use what they have. That's fine with me. The grilled mackerel was not as it was in Korea but it was meatier and juicier -- less salty than the version we had in Andong, Korea. There are a lot of bones so be aware! I'll be looking forward to my next visit. read more

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The food and service are both wonderful and the atmosphere is cozy. Good for a casual lunch or family dinner.

ONG! The best Kim Bop ever! Service was fast food was fresh! All was delicious! I am making this my go to place for Korean!

In a quest to get Korean bbq I seeked this place out. It's literally a mom and pop shop with absolutely no frills. The food was good. My wife went with the ever popular bulgogi and I ordered spicy chicken. Both from the Korean bbq section of the menu. We also ordered an order of vegetable fried dumplings. The food was brought out very quickly. It was plated very nicely and had a hefty side of white rice. My only disappointment was that the bbq wasn't cool it yourself! When I think Korean bbq I think of a place where you grill your own meat. I read other reviews that said this place offers it, and I saw the grills for it. However, I guess it just wasn't a current option. Anyway, beside that it's a hidden gem that is for sure worth checking out. read more

I came on a Friday for lunch past 2 and there were a few others dining in. The parking lot is a little weird since it's off a busy street. But you can exit behind the building to hit the traffic light. There are two rooms to sit in. They also had a TV on. We shared kim bap. It's kind of like sushi. Yum! My sister and I both got the dol soat be bim bop. It was very filling. And very delicious! My friend got the gom tong, which was an orange soup with beef. She loved it! It was very good! She had to take the rest home since it was a lot! The lady who served us was super nice and attentive. I'm thinking it's a family-owned restaurant. I hope this place sticks around! read more

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Arirang - A++. Korean bbq perfection! I'm a fan! I've worked a short walk from this place for a long while now. The only thing I had ever tried was the Krispy Krunchy chicken side when someone would bring the chicken back to work and offer a piece. It was my friend Xiaolu's birthday, and she wanted Korean bbq. The original place for the 5 of us to visit was Lee's but once arriving in the parking lot, there was much debate and fighting before Xiaolu convinced everyone she wanted to go here instead. Since it was her birthday, we went without strong opposition. I do think it was a perfect choice. Koreana 2 is also close too and I have visited Koreana numerous times for lunch because it's so easy to get in and out of(but never for Korean bbq). With Kum's/Arirang, this might be my Korean bbq destination. When pulling into the parking lot here, you'll definitely think you're in the wrong spot. It's kind of in a weird spot but they also have parking in the back. It was later in the evening so we weren't greeted right away but we quickly found a grill tabletop and took a seat. The lady came soon enough. From this moment forward, anytime bbq is mentioned, I want nothing less than Korean bbq. There's nothing like it and it's 350 million times better than anything considered American bbq. We went with all 5 things on the Korean bbq menu (Garl Bi - beef short ribs. Bul Go Gi - Thin sliced ribeye. Dok Gui - Chicken chunks. Dea Ji Gui - Pork chunks. Som Yup Sarl - Fatty slices of pork belly meat). It comes with plenty of banchan(side dishes). We also decided to split a bowl of bibimbap amongst the 5 of us(the portion was enough for all 5 of us). Korean bbq is unique because the food is cooked in front of you in/on the tabletop. Out of all the meats, the thin-sliced ribeye, pork chunks, and pork belly meat were the best. The beef short ribs were good but thicker cuts of meat(steak in particular) aren't a favorite of mine. I could've done without the chicken... it just wasn't that good in my opinion. Most of the meat is cooked in some type of sauce so it's tough to tell when it's finished. That's something to keep in my mind when eating here. The beef and steak is one thing because you can eat meat from varying shades of pink to well done. If you want the meat more on the medium-medium well side, you'll need to speak up. On the other end of the spectrum, some of the meats were left not done but pulled out of the grill with the indication that they were finished. We had to place those meats back on the grill. That might've influenced my disdain towards the chicken. The bibimbap was also good. I'm not sure if we needed it with all of the meat and sides. We were all stuffed by the time we finished. The portions are large so unless you're with a larger group, expect leftovers if you order all the meats... unless you're just ready to eat; Then go crazy with yourself. I've been including this in my reviews where it's a typical group experience and this place is no different. If you need someone else to add to your Korean bbq group for a communal food outing... send me a message. This place is delicious! read more

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Had a brother/sister lunch here. This place is amazing. Quite literally hole in the wall with the owners manning the floor and the kitchen. Don't expect to fully understand the lady working if you bc her English is broken...(that's how you know the food is going to be amazing, by the way. We ended up starting with Mandu and both going for the bulgogi beef which included rice and banchan. The pickled sides are to die for and we couldn't even finish it all. read more

Kum's Cafe - Mon Doo Bul Go Gi - Korean Near Me - Louisville, Kentucky

My family loves Korean food! Kum's Cafe & Arirang fills the void. We stick with the staples - Gal Bi (beef ribs) and Jham Bong (spicy seafood soup). They also have Cajun and fried chicken, but we haven't veered from the Korean menu, so we don't know if it's as good as the Korean faire. read more

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Great food and service! Nice owners. Highly recommend and will go again. Would like to try Korean bbq next.

Korean is not an ethnic food group that I am very familiar with. Not that I am not interested, I just never knew where to go. Thankfully a friend suggested Kum's, and it turned out to be a great first experience. I kind of wanted to go balls to the wall, so I went with the octopus dish. It was perfect for me, because it was spicy, flavorful, and is seafood. They have such a big menu, and while it can be a little overwhelming, there's bound to be something for everyone. The portion sizes are also very generous! read more

Kum's Cafe - Octopus - Korean Near Me - Louisville, Kentucky

Great little local gem! It's a mom and pops Korean restaurant located in South Louisville. It's serving up mostly authentic Korean dishes. I was blown away by the selections of Banchan (those small little dishes!). I've never tried some of those and I've had my fair share of Korean food. The marinated eggplants and fishcakes are amazing! The entree Spicy Seafood Noodle is also very flavorful and the portion is great, with a lot of seafood. The business can be a bit slow and the ambiance is very vintage and home-y. read more

Kum's Cafe - Korean Near Me - Louisville, Kentucky

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Inexpensive Korean option in the area. Went for lunch with a group from work. Interesting place as it is both a sit down Korean place on one side of the restaurant as well as a take out fried chicken place on the other side. Ordered the Dol Sot Bibimbap (hot stone pot) for $10. Came with the traditional side dishes. It checked all the boxes, but the Bibimbap and the sides seemed to be lacking in flavor - even the spicy kimchi was disappointing. For the price, it's hard to complain. But I'd rather pay more and visit other options in the area. read more

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Friends and I stopped by this gem during a roadtrip craving some Korean food and also wanting to support local business. We all thought it was unique that this place offered Korean food AND fried chicken The fried chicken was FRESHLY FRIED. Worth a try We ordered the soon tofu seafood soup, galbi tang, Kimbop, and bibimbop. All truly surprising tasty especially for Louisville (we are from Chicago where there's a larger Asian population). The owner was very kind and made sure to refill our lovely banchans whenever she got a chance. Please consider stopping here and support your local business! read more

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Meant to go to Koreana 2, not far from here, but they were closed on Monday despite or showing it was open on Yelp. Sat down on the dining side away from the crunchy chicken counter. Was greeted by a warm Korean ajumma. Ordered a veggie Kimbap, 2 dolsot tofu bibimbaps. I was hungry and craving some Korean food. Looks like they are known for their crispy and crunchy chicken too. Was a bit apprehensive at first since there were no Korean customers but luckily a Korean mother and daughter walked in shortly after we put in an order. The owners are friendly, attentive, warm and welcoming to everyone. Kudos to them for treating their customers so warmly. The kimbap was yummy, would have been better with sriracha though. We used the gojuchang for a little added flavor. My Korean craving was well satiated at least. There was about 6 banchans or side dishes with our meal. The fish cake was a bit rubbery, over cooked and too salty. The cucumbers were too big for easy banchan consumption. The kimchi was decent, went with the dolsot but didn't have a ton of flavor on their own. The braised potatoes were good, not too sweet. The radish kimchi wasn't bad either. The chewy cucumber or spicy veggie was not my thing, was chewy and I couldn't tell what veggie I was consuming. The mother next to us asked how our food was and I told her it was good. read more

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every time i eat here, i crave it even more. the food and customer service is wonderful. the prices are the cherry on top. i've loved every dish i've tried. the dumpling soup comes with beef/beef broth but i don't eat red meat so the sweet lady made a veggie version :) read more

Kum's Cafe - Jom Paong - Korean Near Me - Louisville, Kentucky

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I have always wanted to try Koreean food but there is not a whole lot to choose from in Louisville. A group of us were at the state for and wanted to get food that wasn't crazy overpriced and where we didn't have to stand outside. I saw Kum's was down the street so we decided to try it out. The building is small and kinda hidden so we passed it up the first time. We immediately ordered and the food came out quick. I ordered the black bean noodles and it was really good. The portions are huge so you will have left overs. The prices are fair for how much you get. read more

I haven't been back to this place in 3 years!! But....this place is still super amazing and has some of the best fried chicken in the city. They now offer jambalaya and gumbo so that was a very pleasant surprise! Seriously- where can you go to get fried chicken and authentic korean food in the city of Louisville? It is family owned and ran, they are the all really nice and even towards the end of the day willing to make me fresh fried chicken! Their diverse menu includes pork chops and sweet honey biscuits! This place is a must try if you haven't! read more

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Great food. Service is alright. Better then others. More side dishes then others. I would go again. read more

We got the bulgogi and the kimbap but the food didn't taste very fresh, especially considering the price we were paying. Side dishes were tasty but I've had better at other Korean restaurants. read more

This is a favorite authentic Korean restaurant. The owners are a sweet older Korean couple. It feels like mom's cooking, and our family really enjoys it. read more

We had the Be Bim Bop and the Bul Go Gi. Both we're delicious. The Bim Bop was our favorite- perfect sauce, crunching veggies, marinated meat, so good! I only wish there was twice as much meat. A great experience. We will be back read more

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Ok, we recently went back, and despite the pandemic and everything going on, Kum's Cafe was still wonderful as before. I applaud them for that! Another wonderful meal, thank you :) read more

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Super friendly lady boss there. Kinda obscure location on poplar level road just passed the Derby city gaming. It is next to a massage place. Half the shop is fried chicken supposedly very good and the other half is the Korean food. Has a limited but all the essentials and they are rather obliging for small modifications. One a cold wintery dinner I just want a simple kimchi jigae which is basically kimchi soup with tofu and beef slices and a bowl of rice. Also their seafood pancake or Pa Jun is awesome. Just the right crispy for me. Again the side dishes banchans are ample and refillable. read more

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Got a spicy Chicken Bul Go Gi. Flavor is amazing. Food comes out hot. Cook to order, staff members are polite. Nice family owned business. You can sit down or get take out. Nice low-key, get away spot to eat at. read more

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Wonderful service! Excellent food! Great prices too. Started with a nice Kim Bop appetizer rice roll. Had the Beef Bul Go Gi as a lunch entree and it was perfect; sweet, tender and juicy. I loved all the sides especially the sun-dried tomato and potato. All delicious! Highly recommend this quiet little spot. The interior is nothing fancy but it is very clean. The African violets in the tree trunk are beautiful. read more

Kum's Cafe - From back to front; Kim chi (mild) cabbage, potato, sun-dried tomato, bean sprouts, cucumber. Kim Bop appetizer roll in front. - Korean Near Me - Louisville, Kentucky

This place will catch you off guard. As far as I can tell the Korean barbecue is spot on. It was a flavorful exchange that was welcome on a lunch break. Would love to come back and try the fried chicken. read more

Amazingly good food. You get a lot for your money. We got 2 different main course and refilled 2 of our sides. With any main course you get several different Korean sides which they refill unlimited. I don't remember the names of the food we got. This is a very authentic Korean restaurant. The woman that took our order knows very little English. Thankfully the person I took with me knew some Korean and could understand her. I highly recommend this place. I'm somewhat of a picky eater but this was delicious. read more

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Okay, if there's one restaurant in Louisville I'm tempted not to review in an effort to keep it semi-secret, this is it. Yes, there's nothing appealing about the part of town it's in, and the ambiance leaves something to be desired, but the food is exceptional (and I'm pretty sure I've been to every Korean restaurant in town). Per the photos, eight varieties of panchan are served with each order (more than anywhere else in the city), and all are very tasty. Highlights on the menu are the bulgogi ($13), which is leaner than at most places, and the clay pot seafood stew ($13). The only thing I don't care for here is the seafood pancake ($10), as it's short on seafood (tasty though, and large enough to make two meals on its own!). read more

Tried this place for the first time. We placed a carry out order for several different items. The food was hot and ready at pickup. We ordered the pork and beef bulgogi. We also ordered the spicy stir fry octopus, man doo and Kim bop. Everything was delicious and it had all the banchan sides you want. We will definitely be eating here again. Next time at the restaurant so we can sit at one of the grill tables. read more

My friend and I stopped in here today because another Korean place we had wanted to try was closed, and I'm very glad that it was. I've eaten at several Korean places in Bloomington where there are a lot of Korean students, and this place had not just the best Korean food I've ever had, but some of the best food I've ever gotten at a restaurant in general. The bulgogi was perfectly seasoned and tender, and cooking it at our table was a lot of fun. The banchan was delicious as well, and a nice variety of things (though I'm honestly not sure what most of it was). The nice Korean lady who served us was great too, very attentive and constantly offering us drink refills and more banchan. And, as a wonderful bonus, their sweet tea was perfect. read more

Kum's Cafe - Korean Near Me - Louisville, Kentucky

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Stumbled upon this hole in the wall and I was pleasantly surprised! The jjajangmyun and bulgogi were both authentic and delicious. I highly recommend both. I didn't have the Korean bbq, but the folks next to me did and it looked really good. I recommend this place to anyone wanting to eat Korean food. read more

Have had only good meals here, over several years. I expect to continue coming here. Always greeted and served quickly, receiving banchan (side dishes) within 5 minutes of arriving and ordering unless the one employee I see is really busy helping others.  Restaurant usually only has 2-3 other parties when I'm there, even though it's during "normal" meal times. Banchan are fine, with free refills. Most recent visit I received napa kimchi (too salty), radish kimchi, cucumber kimchi, potato cooked in sweet syrup, and...I forget.  Soup (soon du bu with seafood) is good; spicy but not too, and most recently contained some medium/small seafood mix, zucchini, and scallions. Women's bathroom has had the same hole in the wall for more than two years, and I'm not sure when they last cleaned the light switch (see photos)! Toilet, sink, and floor are reasonably clean, but barely. This won't deter me, but really, two years?! read more

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I've tried my best to do my research. If correct, I think this is one of the two authentic Korean restaurants which serve Jajangmyeon in the city. Am I wrong? Seriously, if I'm wrong, please let me know. I've been trying to track it down for a long time. There's a Krispy Krunchy Chicken attached to this building as well, which seems like a weird concept, but it totally works. As everyone mentions in the reviews, it looks a little shady outside, but it's totally fine inside. There's extra parking in the back of the shop as well. We ordered egg rolls, bulgogi, and Jajangmyeon. The entrees are accompanied by a variety of sides that include: kimchi, bean sprouts, cucumbers, eggplant, and a few more. The kimchi is simply astounding. It was so good, I would return for that alone. The beef bulgogi was delicious (even if it doesn't look entirely appetizing at first). Also, the black bean sauce was exceptional. The pork bits were perfectly sized and cooked within the dish. As everyone also mentions, you're given a tiny drink at the end of your meal. It looks milky, but tastes tropical like a wonderful surprise. I wish I knew what it was called so I could find it somewhere! We were floored with how yummy all the food was here. Please give it a try! read more

Went for a Gim Tong Beef Broth with beef, cow tripe, green onions, and potato noodle on a snowy day and it blew me away again! The seafood pancake this evening rocked ! The elderly owners now know me since I frequent this place so much. The Ajumma doesn't speak much English but she is so kind and cute and always ready to give my friends and I the side dish refills. I love how she always comes out the door to wave goodbye to us. read more

Kum's Cafe - Gim tong - Korean Near Me - Louisville, Kentucky

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I like that the food is good, the owners are friendly/attentive, the place spacious and clean. The side dishes are plentiful and the owners will bring out more if you ask. If you're feeling industrious and adventurous, try the Korean BBQ (Samyeopsal or pork belly if you're extra adventurous). Choose your meat and grill your own at the table. The grill is easy to use, it comes with rice and several side dishes. A fun way to share dinner with friends. I like the food okay but still prefer the flavors at Koreana. For those who don't want to eat Korean food there's the other option, American foods prepare by Koreans. In the same restaurant, on the other side are fried chicken, side dishes and other American favorites. My husband had the fried chickens, mash potato and other sides. They're delicious. I've eaten out often enough that I've developed certain stereotypes and one of them is that Asians don't make southern style Fried Chickens and Cajun food. I'm happy that my stereotyping is challenged! read more

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Not having Korean food before visiting this place, I had no idea what to expect. I love trying new foods so I didn't really even bother to look up what I was about to experience. Coworkers had recommended trying it, so I thought why not? A great place for lunch during the week. We walked in and were immediately sat. It's a very open seating area and they share this space with a place next door that I believe serves southern comfort food. It isn't incre3dibly spacious but that didn't appear to be a problem as there were only a couple other people here when we visited. Lunch specials run until 3 (maybe 3:30). The food is brought out on a cart, which confused me at first since there were only two of us. But for each table they also bring out a variety of sides to share amongst yourselves- almost a family style type dining experience. We tried two different main dishes and I should have written down the names.. Mine had pork that was covered in a thick, dark brown sauce that had a good kick to it and seemed to have a chili-type flavor to it. There were also veggies mixed into this and I ate it over some sticky rice that was brought out. Absolutely loved it and to add to it I put some of the shredded cabbage side on top of it- a nice crunch to go with the soft rice and pork. The other meal is what I will be getting the next time I'm here. It was a large bowl filled with sprouts, sesame, veggies, some meat, and a fried egg on top. Absolutely wonderful. As soon as this was brought out I knew it's what I should have gotten. With this I suggest cutting up the egg and mixing it immediately so the yolk will spread throughout the dish. I also put some of the cabbage on this when I tried it. Now the woman who served us was difficult to understand (very Korean) so I don't know exactly what the sides were that she brought to us. I tried all of them and each one had something unique about it- all were served cold. The cucumbers and kimchi were my two favorites and both of us used the shredded cabbage on our meals. With the check, you receive a small bottle that has some sort of rice/barley based drink mixture. We googled it before trying it since the writing was all in Korean. It has no added sugars and is had after meals to help with digestion. With no idea how it would taste, we went for it. This stuff tasted like sherbet! So good. I will definitely be back and I'd love to continue trying new things here. The flavors in every bite were wonderful and I can't wait to see what the next new dish brings. read more

Kum's Cafe - What a delicious spread - Korean Near Me - Louisville, Kentucky

I've gone to a variety of Korean restaurants around Louisville, and this is still one of my favorite places to go. It's interesting that it does offer Cajun fried chicken on one side of the restaurant and the other offers the Korean food. All you have to do is ask for the Korean menu and there you have it! We've never been disappointed with the food the multiple times that we've gone here. The people working are always nice; they attend to us quickly, and the wait for the food is reasonable and not too long at all. With each meal, they always bring out a lot of side dishes and offer to bring more if it's not enough; these dishes definitely add to the main course. This time we ordered the hot Ba Bim Bop and the Gal Bi. The Ba Bim Bop was delicious and sizzling in its pot. This rice dish is always flavorful with meat, various vegetables, egg, and a tasty red sauce that you can put into it. The portion is big, and I normally have to take some of it home with me. The Gal Bi was mouth-watering, and it came with grilled meat, lettuce, rice, and another Korean red sauce. With this dish you typically make lettuce wraps and when you eat it, it's a burst of flavor! It is on the more expensive end, but the amount and savory flavors make up for it. So if you want some yummy Korean food, definitely give this place a try! read more

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